Government’s 50k nurses initiative ‘having no impact’ on vacancies

The nursing workforce shortage in England is set to remain severe even though the NHS is on track to meet its recruitment target of 50,000 more nurses by 2024, according to a report from a health policy think tank.

The report’s conclusions echo those of England’s chief nursing officer Ruth May who recently spoke out about the workforce crisis, saying that 50,000 more nurses would now no longer be enough.

In 2019 the government pledged to increase the number of full-time equivalent nurses in the NHS by 50,000 by March 2024, and latest workforce figures suggest that this target will be met, thanks to increased nurse training capacity and recruitment campaigns in the UK and abroad.